City preparing vehicles and 3,000 tons of road materials for major storm expected Sunday night

PITTSBURGH, PA – The Department of Public Works is preparing for a predicted 6 to 12 inches of snowfall starting Sunday night, and warning residents of possibly treacherous road conditions come Monday.

As of Friday morning, light snow was expected during the day Sunday with larger amounts hitting the area after 6 p.m. Sunday evening public works crews will begin working in 12-hour shifts with 50 trucks dispatched overnight and 65 trucks, including tractors affixed with plows, dispatched early Monday morning.

As of Friday the city’s reserves included 2,000 tons of road salt, and 1,000 tons of sand and granular limestone, mixed with liquid calcium chloride. The City will continue to receive shipments of road treatment materials after the storm arrives early next week.

On Friday crews were attaching plows to the extra tractors set to be deployed Monday and extending equipment repair hours to have a full complement of DPW vehicles at the ready.

Mayor William Peduto and Chief Operations Officer Guy Costa are urging residents to prepare for delays related to the storm. Public Works has deemed this a Level 3 storm, meaning a heavy emphasis on emergency and primary routes, followed by plowing of secondary streets. It could take up to 48 hours after the snowfall ends for streets to be clear, and the fewer vehicles are traveling roads Monday the faster crews can complete their work.